Got the itch....

[tonyb]

.....to upgrade of coarse.Haveing no experience with outboard DAC's,was wondering if I would notice a big improvement.Now,lots of you guys have them,so tell me,was it worth it? You know the law of diminishing returns starts to apply soon.Not that I am not happy with the sound of my gear cause I am...unbelievably happy,you just wonder if your missing something.

Looking at....{ I research things to death }

Benchmark DAC1

PS AUDIO Digilink 3

Musical Fidelity tri-vista 21 - my fav so far+ they are flippin' beautifull

Any thoughts would be appreciated

[pearsall001]

Add the Van Alstine Ultra DAC to your list. It has elevated my listening pleasure to a new level. For what it brings to the table it is worth every penny. I had my doubts as to whether an outboard DAC would add that much to the music. Franks DAC brings it in spades. Not cheap, but you do get what you paid for & them some.
http://www.avahifi.com/

[SCompRacer]

Those are all great choices. If your interested in trying something else, check with Paul Grzybek of Tube Audio Design (http://www.angelfire.com/biz/bizzyb/index.html). Paul is local to us in Wheaton. In a recent email he mentioned he would be coming out with a DAC in the ~$1K range that might be worth a listen. I have owned his TAD-1000 and TAD-60 amps and was very pleased with the looks and performance per dollar ratio. He may have a home trial in place for the DAC when it comes out. I would try one but I already have a wonderful source in place.

[Joey_V]

Tony,

As you know, the PS Audio DAC III is on its way to my place and I'm planning on getting the Benchmark to do comparisons with...

[reeltrouble1]

Tony,

I would think the MF Tri-Vista would be the same DAC as I have in my Tri-Vista player. It is light years beyond my Pioneer 47ai for redbook and high rez. There is nothing the Tri-Vista does not do well unless you do not want detail for synergy reasons. You will hear what is on the disc.

The Parasound Ultra 2000 I use with my Pioneer was a decent enough upgrade that I would buy it again, not light years though, as it only plays redbook and HDCD I would say the it makes the highs nicer and the mids get more liquid, clarity and detail are improved.

RT1

[tonyb]

Tony,

As you know, the PS Audio DAC III is on its way to my place and I'm planning on getting the Benchmark to do comparisons with...

Yeah Joey,waiting to hear your thoughts on those two.
Rt- I have heard nothing but good things on any of the choices I posted.Some tell me the same as you,the MF will bring it to a new level.
Of all the good it can do,is there any area of SQ you think may suffer,or more plainly,are there trade offs ?

[reeltrouble1]

Tony,

My MF is detailed seems to have the ability to pick up every nuance on a disc, this always means if the disc is not so good, the sound you hear is not so good. Of course the opposite is also true and most disc's these days sound good. I have no desire to upgrade from the Tri-Vista.

I have a feeling any of the choices you pick, well there is no slouch in the bunch. BlueMD has the psaudio and he just loves it, I heard it with the Revel Gems I think it was, nice very nice.

As a side note Pearsall passed an excellent Consonance cd source on to me, keeping the Van Alstine with a transport he has, there are just so many quality companies with products competing its a good time to be an audio nut.

RT1

[Midnite Mick]

I am impressed with Phil's findings on the AVA. I have heard a few Consonance players and have liked all of them. Having said that any DAC that is virtually independent of the source (I would think dynamic range would be one that it would be dependent on however) must be a great DAC. I have been on forums that the Benchmark was the rave but people still found differences relative to the source.

Just me thoughts. Interested on all the reviews.

Good luck,
Mike

[pearsall001]

For the record, I did try the Benchmank DAC in my system. To my ears it didn't bring anything to the table other than being a lateral move. Next up was Frank's Ultra DAc & whala, an outstanding upgrade & an immediate keeper. That's why it's so important to listen to any new gear in your system to come to a conclusion, that being either +/-. Bottom line has always been to let your ears decide. So far they've never let me down!!